Seat belt buckle assemblies have long been employed to assist in restraining vehicle occupants in the event of a collision or an accident. Indeed, in many states, use of seat belt buckle assemblies is required when motor vehicles are in operation.
Conventional seat belt buckle assemblies include at least a lap belt portion that has a buckle connected thereto positioned on one side of the vehicle seat and a seat belt buckle receptacle positioned on an opposite side of the vehicle seat. The lap belt portion (and shoulder portion if one is provided) is moved across the vehicle passenger and the buckle is engaged with the seat belt buckle receptacle.
In some vehicle models, the back seat of a motor vehicle includes three seats, a seat behind the vehicle driver, a seat behind a front seat passenger, and a center seat. To provide a seat belt buckle assembly for the center seat, it is known to provide a seat belt buckle sub-assembly that includes two buckle receptacles, one for the passenger sitting on one side of the vehicle and one for the passenger sitting in the center seat. While seat belt buckle receptacle sub-assemblies of this type are generally known, quick and easy installation of seat belt buckle receptacle sub-assemblies is challenging.
For example, seat belt buckle sub-assemblies typically include a mounting bracket on which the seat belt buckle receptacles are mounted. The mounting bracket, in turn, is secured to the vehicle frame. However, because a cushioned seat portion is installed over the vehicle frame, it is necessary to insure that the seat belt receptacles remain upright so that the seat portion does not conceal or restrict access the seat belt receptacles. Accordingly, it is desirable to bias the seat belt buckle receptacle into an upright position before installation.
However, when the seat belt buckle receptacles are biased into the upright position, it becomes difficult to access the mounting bracket with installation tools to secure the seat belt buckle sub-assembly to the vehicle frame. More specifically, the seat buckle receptacles block access to the mounting bracket. To access the mounting bracket, an installer must manually move the seat belt buckle receptacles into a pre-installed position with one hand, against the biasing force, and hold the seat belt buckle receptacles in this position while using an installation tool with the other hand secure the seat belt receptacle to the vehicle body. By having only one hand free to manipulate the installation tool, it may take longer to properly secure the seat belt buckle receptacle to the vehicle body, as well as lead to potential misalignment of the seat belt buckle receptacle. Therefore, what is needed is a temporary hold mechanism to retain the seat belt buckle receptacle sub-assembly in a pre-installed position that may be easily disengaged to return the seat belt buckle sub-assembly to an upright position once installation is complete.